Appleton on Daggers

Oxford United head for Dagenham on Wednesday night looking to make progress in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy.

The U’s stormed to a memorable win over local rivals Swindon Town in the last round and now take on the Daggers with a place in the Southern section semi-finals at place

“We put in a performance and got the result in the last round against Swindon so it would be a shame to throw all that away” Head Coach Michael Appleton told Yellow Player HD today. “Whether there are 9,000 people like the Swindon game or 900 or even 90 it doesn’t matter. It’s a first team fixture and the rewards if you win it are obvious- win and all of a sudden you are in a semi-final.

“I’m looking forward to it and actually quite excited about it because it’s a cup tie and an opportunity for a few people to flex their muscles a little bit and try and stake their claim for places in league games.

United are without the suspended Ryan Taylor and Johnny Mullins while Callum O’Dowda is on international duty with the Republic of Ireland under 21s. With Sam Long and Josh Ruffels ruled out through injury and skipper Jake Wright still a doubt it may just open the door for one or two players to show what they can do.

“Players will be told that if you really want to show what you can do then make sure you do it in a game. It’s one thing doing it in training but you need to show it in competitive games.” Michael said.

See the full interview plus an exclusive chat with Danny Rose in Yellow Player HD right now.